U.S. 501 widening in Myrtle Beach area nears finish line. When can you expect it to end?

Construction crews are getting closer to finishing up a widening project on U.S. 501.

The project in Horry County seeks to add lanes from Carolina Bays Parkway to Myrtle Ridge Drive, a section often bombarded with heavy traffic, especially during the summer months.

If you see construction crews on the busy highway now, it’s likely for other items outside of the project, according to South Carolina Department of Transportation spokesperson Kelly Moore. The contractor has been working on items outside of the main project, which includes removing old signal poles and drainage improvements, she said.

After these items are completed, new overhead signs will be installed and the final paving and grading work will happen this fall, Moore said.

The project is expected to wrap up by the end of this year.

There are a few different widening projects currently in place on U.S. 501.

One is from Gardner Lacy Road to SC-544, which will widen the four lanes into six and include additional turn lane storage.

There are also a few RIDE 3 projects in place, such as realigning the highway at Broadway Street to connect to 7th Avenue, and extending certain corridors like Postal Way to Waccamaw Drive. The corridor improvements are currently in the construction phase, according to Horry County, and realignment is set to begin construction next year.

RIDE, or Road improvement and Development Effort, projects are supported by a 1% sales tax in Horry County.